EDITORSDEJANIRAH COUTO FEZA GUNERGUN MARIA PIA PEDANI

ISTANBUL, 2014

SEAPOWER, TECHNOLOGY AND TRADEEDITORSDEJANIRAH COUTO FEZA GUNERGUN MARIA PIA PEDANI

Kapak GÖRSELİ:FEYHAMAN DURAN, “TERSANE-İ AMİRE”, 1949, ISTANBUL NAVAL MUSEUM COLLECTION

GRAFİK TASARIM:MERİÇ KÖSTEM

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CONTENTS

Introduction Dejanirah Couto, Feza Günergun, Maria Pia Pedani

Part I - Maritime Powers and Conflicts: The Mediterranean, Aegean Sea and Black Sea

Ties that bind: An ottoman maritime patron from the Mediterranean to the Indian Ocean Nabil al-Tikriti

Phocaea port: From the Genoese to the Ottomans Zeki Arıkan

Preveza battle from a naval perspective Ali Rıza İşipek

Turgut Reis (1485-1565): The uncrowned King of the Mediterranean (1485-1565) Özlem Kumrular

The expedition of Charles V to Algiers: Before and after the duel and balance in the Mediterranean Özlem Kumrular

The Cretan War and Köprülü Mehmet Pasha’s rise to power Filiz Eşli

The Ottoman-Russian alliance in the Balkans and the Seven Islands naval operation (1798-1799) Hanife Öztürk

The first naval campaign of Sultan Abdülaziz: The role of the Ottoman navy during the Montenegro revolt Gökhan Atmaca

Part II - Maritime Powers and Conflicts: Indian Ocean and Red Sea

Rivalries and collaborations: Ottoman and Portuguese empires in a comparative historiography Salih Özbaran

Ottoman warships in the Indian Ocean armada of 1538: A Qualitative and statistical analysis Giancarlo Casale

Rumi networks in India and the second siege of Diu (1546) Dejanirah Couto

The Ottomans and the sixteenth century Bay of Bengal Rila Mukherjee

Turkish networks in the western Indian Ocean in the 16th-17th Centuries Radhika Seshan

Some geographical and nautical comments on the Muhît and other related works of Seydi Ali Reis José Malhão Pereira

Ottoman lighthouses in the Red Sea Taner Albayrak

The Sadana Island shipwreck from the Red Sea to Ottoman Istanbul Cheryl Anne Ward

Part III – Naval Strategies

Anti-ottoman activities of the Order of the Knights of St. Stephen during the second half of the 16th century Mikail Acıpınar

The era of “Ghazi Hasan Pasha of Algiers” (1713 - 1790) and its aftermath: The last visionary ottoman Grand Admiral (Grand Vizier) Levent Kirval

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Life on board: The Americans and the Ottoman Navy in the Levant during the first half of the 19th century Rosa Maria Delli Quadri

The Impact of ottoman seapower on U.S. foreign policy and the creation of the U.S. Navy Yasemin Dobra-Manço

A Meeting at sea: Strategic culture & Turkish/U.S. 19th century naval relations Gregory D. Young

Admiral Alfred T. Mahan and his views on the naval history of Turkey Nikolai Fedorov

Part IV - Traders and Corsairs

Islands, pirates, privateers and the Ottoman Empire in the early modern Mediterranean Louis Sicking

Corsairs in the service of the Grand Turk: “Men of the frontier” Emilio Sola

A Window on Muslim traders in the Mediterranean through Maltese archives (1530-1565) Joan Abela

Maritime trade from Ragusa (Dubrovnik) to western Europe during the 16th and the 17th century Gianluca Masi

Maritime connections between Ottoman Empire and the city of Rijeka in the 19th century Tea Mayhew

The Kingdom of Naples and the Ottoman Empire during the Napoleonic era: Diplomatic and trade relations Mirella Mafrici

Sailing from the Ionian Sea: People, ships and trade in the Island of Lefkada in the 18th century Christina E. Papakosta

Why did a Russian privateer present the Ottoman governor of Acre with a prized ship? Mitia Frumin

The Merchant ships of the Ottoman Greeks in the ports at the mouths of the Danube during the 16th–17th centuries Cristian Luca

Ships and sailors: Maritime transportation in the Black Sea, 18th century Necmettin Aygün

Part V - Scientific Instruments, Cartography, Artillery

A Treatise by the 16th century Ottoman admiral Seydi Ali Reis on rub-i müceyyeb (sine quadrant) Gaye Danışan Polat

The Use of the celestial globe by the Ottomans: Osman Saib Efendi’s Ta‘lîmü’l-Küre Atilla Bir, Burak Barutçu, Mustafa Kaçar

Research opportunities in Ottoman cartography and the location of maps Thomas D. Goodrich

The Piri Reis map of 1513: Art and literature in the service of science Gregory C. McIntosh

Maps of Venice drawn by Piri Reis and Turkish naval cartographers (16th, 17th and 18th centuries) Cevat Ülkekul

Knowledge sharing among seamen: 15th- 16th century Latin and Ottoman portolans of the Mediterranean Candan Nemlioğlu, Yasemin Nemlioğlu Koca

Abū Bakr al-Dimashqī’s (d. 1691) hemispheric map of the New World and the representation of the seas in his maps of the world and the continents Sonja Brentjes

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Cartography of Gallipoli and the Dardanelles: From Cristoforo Buondelmonti (15th c.) to the maps of the 18th century in the collections of the Bibliotèque nationale de France Emanuelle Vagnon

Ancient Venetian bronze cannons preserved in Istanbul: Some preliminary considerations Marco Morin

Genoese naval cannons preserved in the Askeri Müze, Istanbul: Technological and operational comparisons between the Ottoman and Genoese sea ordnance of the 16th century Renato Gianni Ridella, Gülşen Arslanboğa

Part VI – Nautical Archeology, Shipbuilding, and Steam technology

Latest discoveries on medieval seafaring in the Mediterranean: Yenikapı Shipwrecks Project 2005-2012, Istanbul-Turkey Ufuk Kocabaş

Study of ancient ship-graffiti from the Black Sea and the Aegean Kostas A. Damianidis

Ottoman ships and Venetian craftsmen in the 16th century Maria Pia Pedani

An extraordinary sample of mid-17th century ottoman naval architecture: The ship Melek Pasha İbrahim Başak Dağgülü

Foreign shipwrights under Selim III: The case of Jacques Balthazard Le Brun Tuncay Zorlu, Fatih Özbay

The boat of Ali Reis: An Inebolu boat built with the ‘Shell First’ technique at the end of the 19th century Ali Ruhan Çubuk

The Change in the shipbuilding technology in the Ottoman Navy in the 19th century: The age of steam-powered ships Nurcan Bal

The Legendary ship of the Turkish naval history: The galleon Mahmudiye Hacer Bulgurcuoğlu

Development of steamship travelling in the Mediterranean (1833-1860) Alain Servantie

Part VII – Health on Board, Naval Training

A Late 18th century surgical station (Cerrah Dükkanı) for dock workers at the Ottoman Imperial Shipyard in Istanbul Ayten Altıntaş, M. Kaan Sağ

Hygiene on board: Instructions for Ottoman mariners in the late 19th century Halil Tekiner, Muharrem Uçar, Adnan Ataç

Turkish nautical terms of English origin Yücel Karlıklı

Part VIII – Maritime Archives and Museology

Recovering voices from the past: Using archival material in galleries Margarette Lincoln

Naval History Archives of the Istanbul Naval Museum Fatih Erbaş

A new project: The Istanbul Naval Museum as a leisure-learning space Ece Irmak

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A WINDOW ON MUSLIM TRADERS IN THE MEDITERRANEAN THROUGH MALTESE ARCHIVES (1530-1565)

Joan Abela

It will be the main concern of this paper to try and offer a picture of the Mediterranean where different cultures and religions, apart from clashing, found it also opportune to move along each other’s shores to trade despite their traditional enmity.1 Malta, the official base of the Knights of St John, and as such considered the epitome of the Christian fight against the Muslim, offers an excellent example of this paradox. This paper will seek to outline the practical way in which commercial and financial activities functioned under such circumstances. Such analysis is essential if one needs to probe into the actions of the different stakeholders in Mediterranean trade since these were very traditional and often bound by strong religious beliefs. From this study the contradiction which existed between the Knights’ economic needs and their spiritual needs becomes strikingly obvious. On the one hand the Knights had to live up to their reputation as Christendom’s bulwark against the Muslim, and on the other, they had an interest in keeping open commercial links with Ottoman trading posts spread throughout the Mediterranean. Thus, there existed other realities apart from that of total hostility between the cross and the crescent which come to the fore when tackling and investigating daily operations of the different stakeholders in trade.

In 1530 the Maltese Islands2 were given as a fief to the Naval Hospitaller Order of the Knights of St John of Jerusalem and of Rhodes, by Charles V of Spain. Once in Malta, the Knights Hospitallers soon sought to exploit the island’s deep-water harbours which provided excellent anchorage facilities for their fleet. Thus, from its very first few days in Malta the Order of St John continued to live up to its Rhodian corsairing tradition, and soon became a constant nuisance for Ottoman shipping, not only because it attacked privateering Ottoman allies of the Barbary Coast,3 but also because it posed a constant threat to Ottoman interests.

The primary sources

The Notarial Archives at Valletta, Malta’s capital city, still hold extant copies of various contracts which were used to finance economic activities, including corsairing. Dating back to the late 15th century these notarial documents constitute an untapped source of information this being mainly due to consistent inaccessibility throughout the years. Contracts from the late 15th century to the mid-sixteenth century are mostly written in Latin, but the vocabulary and

1 Salvatore Bono has even noted the presence in Tunis of Maltese merchants purchasing prize ships and cargoes during the seventeenth century. Salvatore Bono, “Guerra, Corsara e Commercio nel Maghreb Barbaresco (Secoli XVI-XVIII)” in El Comerç Alternativ. Corsaris i Contraban (ss XV- XVIII), Gonçal Lopez Nadal (ed.), (Mallorca: Inst. Estudis Balearics, 1990) pp. 133-144, and 141-142.2 Lying almost exactly in the centre of the Mediterranean Sea, 93km off the coast of Sicily and 300 km north of Libya, (288 km east of Tunisia) the Maltese islands, command the narrow part of the sea that lies between Sicily and Tripoli. The Maltese Archipelago consists of 7 islands, 3 of which are inhabited, Malta, Gozo and Comino, with Malta being the largest island and having a total area of 316 km2.3 The states of the North African coast from Egypt to Morocco.

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grammar are far removed from the classical language and the wording, apart from including abbreviations, often includes terms which reflect Sicilian and Arabic influences.4 Another primary source which was useful for this study were the Liber Bullarum or Magisterial Bulls, which refer to registers of the Chancery of the Order of St John that contain, among other matters, the concession of passports and official licences.5

Documents from the notarial archives

Breaking away from the traditional role assigned to the “Turk”6 in Maltese historiography- that of the “enemy”- in this paper the “Turk” shall be shown as a negotiator and business partner, a role which even though limited, has been highly understated. Established historical beliefs remain in place, thus Sicily will still be Malta’s main life-blood of supplies. However, it shall be shown how alternative routes were often explored and exploited by the Knights, routes which often required carrying out trade with the “Turk” or with subjects of the Ottoman Empire.

The Maltese archives hold various types of partnership agreements categorised as “societas” or “accomanda” which made it possible for businessmen coming from different spheres to come together and pool capital.7 The inclusion of specific phrases in these agreements, such as, “a modo di mercanti”, or, “iuxta usum Rhodium”,8 indicate that these documents represent a legal order based on internationally accepted norms and customs which were deeply rooted in the Mediterranean.9 A contract drawn in Malta on July 8, 1555,10 a few years after the fall of Tripoli in Barbary to the Turks in 1551, guides the reader through the various stages of a typical venture agreement to be undertaken to what is referred to as the land of the “infidels”. Here, the Ragusan merchant and patrone Nob. Marino de Johanne agreed to charter half the space on his ship, which had a capacity of 1,000 salme11 of wheat, to Nob. Paolo de Antonio, also from Ragusa. The ship, which was to be well-equipped for the voyage,12 had to leave the Maltese port in July, provided that the weather was good for navigating, and had to sail to the fortress of “Tripoli de Barbaria”. Once there, the space chartered on the ship had to be loaded with all kinds of merchandize within one month from arrival. If for some reason there was a delay in the supply of merchandize, Marino had to wait another extra ten days known as days of grace or “di stallia”.13 However, for these extra days, Paolo had to pay 4 gold scudi per day. The merchandize had to be transported to either, Malta, Brindisi, Otranto or to any other destination which the client chose.14

4 In fact vernacular medieval Maltese has only survived in a Maltese poem written by notary Pietro Caxaro who died in 1485: Mikiel Fsadni & Godfrey Wettinger, Peter Caxaro’s Cantilena: a Poem in Medieval Maltese, (Malta: Publishers Enterprises Group,1968).5 Maroma Camilleri, “The Chancery of the Order of St. John” in Guardians of Memory, Essays in Remembrance of Hella Jean Bartolo Winston, Charles Farrugia (ed.), (Malta: National Archives of Malta, 2008) pp. 157-191.6 The Muslims of the Ottoman Empire were invariably referred to and grouped under the umbrella word “Turks” by Europeans without making any specific ethnic or regional distinction. When the term “Turk” is used in this study it is because this same word is used in the original documents.7 For the Maltese context refer to Joan Abela, Port Activities in Mid-Sixteenth Century Malta, MA Dissertation, (University of Malta, 2007) Chapter 3 passim.8 The phrase ‘iuxta usum Rhodium’ is found in N[otarial] A[archives] V[alletta] hereinafter NAV, R[egister] 202/8, fol. 237v, (3.iii.1543 ab inc), R 202/8, fol. 243, (4.iii.1543 ab inc), MS 514/1, n.f. (26.iv.1558), MS 514/1, n.f., (13.vii.1558), to quote some examples.9 Studies on the institutional and legal order of international trade in the Mediterranean in the early modern period are still at their early stages. Molly Greene, Catholic Pirates and Greek Merchants (Princeton N.J.: Princeton University Press, 2010) pp. 110-111.10 NAV, MS 778/1, n.f., (8.vii.1555).11 It was specified that the weight of the salma corresponded to that of Messina “salmj milli de grano dela missina generale”.12 The exact wording used in the contract was “ben in ordine ben accordata stagna con soj hominj velj et tuttj altrij cosi necessarj sufficienti a qual si vogla navigatione” [sic] (in good shape, with its proper tackle, well equipped with its men, sails, and all other things necessary and sufficient for any type of voyage). This clause was inserted since no passage in the Sea-Law dealt “explicitly with the obligation of the ship-owner to provide the ship in good state”. However merchants were advised to make sure that “the ship is ‘fresco e non vecchio’, and that it is ‘bene concio’ and ‘bene stagnato’.” Additionally they had to ensure that she was well equipped with armaments depending on whether the voyage was in time of peace or war: see Walter Ashburner, The Rhodian Sea-Law (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1909) pp. lxxxiii.13 Chapters 25, 28 and 29 of the Rhodian Sea Law deal with the delay in loading by the merchant. If the agreed period for loading was not maintained, the merchant was allowed an extra ten days’ grace during which time he had to feed the sailors. If the merchant did not provide the cargo under the stipulated conditions he was responsible for any damage to the ship. W. Ashburner, The Rhodian Sea-Law, p. clxxxvii.14 These procedures follow the same pattern and directives as those described by Ashburner in examples he gives for the earlier medieval period. W. Ashburner, The Rhodian Sea-Law, p. clxxx.

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The Notarial Archives also record how Muslim captives in Malta negotiated their own redemption. A document dated April 27, 1558,15 refers to the manumission of a Muslim slave which was to be attained by the same slave paying for his own ransom. Here we are presented with a situation wherein Hon. Antonius de Banda from Messina was patrone of the vaxello belonging to Magister Marcus Antonius Delixandro from Messina, which ship was equipped for a voyage to the now Ottoman Fortress of Tripoli in Barbary. Antonius received a Muslim slave named Busert Bin Hahmet de Casar, from the Maltese Hon. Magister Josephus Baldaquino. He was to conduct the said slave to Tripoli, and from there retrieve the stipulated sum of eighty ducats or their value in denari, or in wool or other goods which the Arabs sold inside the Tripolitan fortress, that were to be bought duty free. This is reflective of a situation wherein ransoms were usually expressed in terms of money, but due to difficulties in bringing in actual cash, the amount was invested in goods. These could then be sold profitably on the island and the ransom paid out of the proceeds.16 The Moor slave Busert Bin Hahmet swore, according to his Muslim belief, to pay Josephus himself, within twenty days of the arrival of the ship in Tripoli.

Documents from The National Library Malta - the issue of safe conducts

After the conquest of Constantinople by the Ottomans in 1453, rigid measures controlling mercantile traffic between the Mediterranean and the Black Sea were put in force. Elizabeth Zachariadou explains how in the middle of the 15th century, when Rhodes was under Hospitaller rule, the Greek-Orthodox monks of Patmos who were Ottoman subjects, maintained good relations with the Hospitallers.17 She further explains that the dual protection which these monks enjoyed benefited both Muslims and Christians in trading matters and even for spying purposes.18 Similar to the situation in Rhodes, once established in Malta, the Order’s aim was not simply to extend the island’s trading zone, but even to spy on the enemy. Malta thus also tried to exploit all possible links and get the best out of the three worlds. Christian and Muslim captives19 also served as mediators who circulated information on the enemy through their ransoming activities. Until quite recently very few histories focused on ransom procedures and their role in the economy of the Mediterranean20. A fresh perspective was presented by historians like Wolfgang Kaiser who redefined redemption processes and classified them as forming an “economy of ransom”.21 This economy was fuelled by another important

15 NAV, MS 514/1, n.f., (27.iv.1558).16 Godfrey Wettinger, Slavery in the Islands of Malta and Gozo ca. 1000-1812 (Malta: Publishers Entreprises Group, 2002) p.194.17 Elizabeth Zachariadou, “Monks and Sailors under the Ottoman Sultans,” The Ottomans and the Sea - Oriente Moderno, Nuova serie, 20 /1 (2001) pp. 139-147, p. 144.18 The author discusses how at times fermans obtained by these Greek monks to buy grain from Ottoman territory carried with them spying missions on the movement of the Turkish forces. On the other hand, these monks also established similar relations with the Ottoman Turks, thereby, in Zachariadou’s own words, “Patmos got the best of the three worlds: Muslim, the Roman Catholic and the Greek Orthodox”.19 Fontenay insists that one needs to differentiate between the term “captives” and “slaves” since the former had an exchange value, while slaves had a use value. The majority of captives were bought with the intent of making a good investment while slaves were bought to reap the fruits of their labour. According to Fontenay one thus needs to distinguish between Christian or Muslim slaves who sought to redeem themselves and “black” African slaves who were acquired from the sub-Sahara and who lived in shackles without the hope of ever being ransomed. Michel Fontenay, “Esclaves et/ou captives: préciser les concepts” in Le commerce de captifs: les intermédiaires dans l’échange et le rachat des prisonniers en Méditerranée, XVe-XVIIIe siècle, Wolfgang Kaiser (ed.), (Rome: École française de Rome, 2008) pp. 15-24. Fontenay’s argument has been criticized in that not all Christian and Muslim slaves were eventually ransomed, in fact the majority died in slavery, and that contemporary writers used both terms interchangeably in their sources. Daniel Bernardo Hershenzon, Early Modern Spain and the creation of the Mediterranean: Captivity, Commerce, and Knowledge, Unpublished PhD thesis in History, (University of Michigan, 2011), p. 25. http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/89664/1/hershenz_1.pdf: (accessed 26 October 2012). Salvatore Bono on the other hand argued that only those slaves who were eventually ransomed could be termed as “captives”, and this distinction could only be made after the actual ransom has taken place: Salvatore Bono, “ Slave Histories and Memoirs in the Mediterranean World: A Study of the Sources (Sixteenth-Eighteenth Centuries)” in Trade and Cultural Exchange in the Early Modern Mediterranean: Braudel’s Maritime Legacy Trade, Maria Fusaro, Colin Heywood, Mohamed-Salah Omri (eds.), (London & New York: I.B. Tauris, 2010) pp. 97-115, p. 100.20 These include Annales historians like Jean Mathiex, “Trafic et prix de l’homme en Méditerranée aux XVIIe et XVIIIe Siècles,” Annales, E.S.C., 9 (1954) pp. 157-164; Lucette Valensi, “Esclaves chrétiens et esclaves noirs à Tunis au XVIIe siècle”, Annales, E.S.C., 9 (1967) pp. 1267-1288 who tackled Christian slavery in North Africa from an economic perspective by looking at prices, markets and profits. More recently historians like Ellen Friedman analyzed the activities of religious orders who were commissioned to carry out ransom procedures in the Maghreb: Ellen G. Friedman, Spanish Captives in North Africa in the Early Modern Ages (Madison, Wis.: University of Wisconsin Press, 1983). The most comprehensive work to date is that by Robert C. Davis, Christian Slaves, Muslim Masters: White Slavery in the Mediterranean, the Barbary Coast, and Italy, 1500-1800, (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2003).21 Wolfgang Kaiser, “La excepción permanente. Actores, visibilidad y asimetrías en los intercambios comerciales entre los países

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sector in the economy of Mediterranean countries – the corso. Kaiser argues that the regulation of corsairing activities and the subsequent ransoming processes provided a means for rationalizing trade with the “enemy”. Following this line of thought, I will explore how ransom intermediaries interacted with institutions who in turn tried to regulate their activities through the issue of safe passages. Such practice helped to weave a web of connectivity throughout the Ottoman-Christian Mediterranean and shape the economic policies of both religions. It will also show how the ransoming of Christian and Muslim slaves did not always follow a separate process, one independent from the other, but at times these ransom expeditions were combined to fully exploit a round trip voyage by taking “home” redeemed Muslim slaves and bringing back Christian captives in the incoming journey. Thus such processes are no longer depicted as single phenomena but rather more as a more complicated process of negotiation which required mutual co-operation between the two main religions who were constantly contesting for power in the Mediterranean.

Once established in Malta, the Hospitaller Order took over corsairing responsibilities from the Sicilian government. The need to have an efficient naval organization required the state to mitigate or abolish irregularities in matters relating to corso. Later on, these led to further specialization in the adjudication process and it was thus that the year 1605 saw the setting up of the state’s prize court or Tribunale degli Armamenti (Magistracy of Armaments).22

The importance of safe passage documents or salvi conductus is to be seen in the light of the great impact of piracy, whether licensed or not, on sixteenth-century Mediterranean trade. The shipment of a vast number of valuable commodities circulating the Mediterranean, like gold, silk, spices and crucially, grain, made piracy “the land of opportunity”. Braudel describes piracy as “eating the food of others in order to remain strong”,23 thus highlighting the strong dependence of economic wellbeing on the incessant targeting of merchant vessels. This was especially so on islands such as Malta, which did not enjoy the benefits of a fertile hinterland. As already noted, such plundering would of course result in shortages elsewhere in the Mediterranean with the capture of grain ships causing the most disastrous effects, especially in times of famine.

In asserting the right to make war, the state became the owner of all property acquired through corsairing thus holding the right to dispose of prizes as was deemed fit. In fact, the practice in Malta dictated that prizes were to be divided in specific percentages among which there was 10% commission in favour of the Grand Master. Accordingly, just like the policy adopted in Rhodes,24 any ships flying the Hospitaller flag had to be covered by a licence25 which would specifically state that the captain and the crew of the licensed corsair ship were prohibited from molesting Christian shipping26 or other ships considered friendly, even if Muslim. The mention of Muslim ships as friendly points to the great ambiguity which was so very characteristic of the

europeos y el Magreb (siglos XVI-XVII)” in Circulación de personas e intercambios en el Mediterráneo y en el Atlántico (siglos XVI, XVII, XVIII), José Antonio Martinez Torres (ed.), (Madrid: CSIC, 2008) pp.171-189; Wolfgang Kaiser, “ L’économie de la rançon en Méditerranée occidentale (XVIe-XVIIe siècle)” in Richezza del mare, Richezza dal mare, secc.XIII-XVIII, S. Cavaciocchi (ed.), 2 vols. (Florence: Le Monnier, 2006) vol. 2, pp. 689-701.22 The Tribunale degli Armamenti had the specific intention of running the corsair business. One of the main concerns of this tribunal was “the explosion in the corso, and the problems it was creating”, Molly Green, “Victims of Piracy? Ottoman Lawsuits in Malta (1602-1687) and the Changing Course of Mediterranean Maritime History” in Trade and Cultural Exchange, pp. 177-201, p. 180. Similar developments took place in other countries in continental Europe like for example France and the Netherlands who jealously watched over their power and interests. Carl J. Kulsrud, Maritime Neutrality to 1780; A History of the Main Principles Governing Neutrality and Belligerency to 1780 (Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1936) p. 11.23 Fernand Braudel, The Mediterranean and the Mediterranean World in the Age of Philip II, (trans. S. Reynolds), 2 vols. (Berkeley, Los Angeles & London: University of California Press, 1995) vol. 2, p. 869.24 Anthony Luttrell, “ The Earliest Documents on the Hospitaller Corso at Rhodes: 1413 and 1416” in Intercultural Contacts in the Medieval Mediterranean, Benjamin Arbel (ed.), (London & Portland Oregon: F.Cass, 1996) pp. 177-188, p. 177.25 Such licences, also known as letters patent, were granted for one or more years. Salvatore Bono, “Naval Exploits and Privateering” in Hospitaller Malta 1530-1798: Studies on Early Modern Malta and the Order of St John of Jerusalem, in Victor Mallia Milanes (ed.), (Msida, Malta: Mireva Publications, 1993) pp. 351–397, p. 391.26 Particular emphasis was given to the ships of His Catholic Majesty and of the Venetian Republic. However, various disputes arose between the Hospitaller Order and Venice since such instructions were often breached to the detriment of the Christian merchants. Victor Mallia-Milanes, Venice and Hospitaller Malta 1530-1798 – Aspects of a Relationship (Malta: Publishers Entreprises Group, 1992), passim. English shipping was considered to be fair game since it was known that these supplied the Barbary with arms and other goods. In accordance to Papal instructions, Jews and Greek Christians were also to be respected, although official documentation from the seventeenth century attests to the continuous molesting of these Greek Christian subjects. Paul Cassar, “The Maltese Corsairs and the Order of St John of Jerusalem,” in The Catholic Historical Review, XLVI/ 2 (1960) pp. 137-156, pp. 145-146; M. Greene, Catholic Pirates, passim.

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early modern Mediterranean.27 While the Knights tried to circumvent their way around the rules established by the Consolato del Mare as to what constituted a friendly ship, at the same time, when the need arose and in order to replenish their resources they protected that which for them would have otherwise been defined as the “eternal enemy”.28 Corsairs were bound to ensure their adherence to these rules, as may be noted from the licence issued to Johannes Ros, a Rhodiot merchant and corsair,29 or to the Maltese merchant Johanni Belia,30 who on obtaining their piratical licence promised not to attack any Christian subjects or vassals. Such blanket prohibitions are easily understandable since unrestricted attacks on friendly shipping could easily entangle the Order in an unwanted and costly confrontation.31

Corsairs had to present persons who acted as surety, or fidejussors in Latin legal terminology, who would guarantee their proper conduct. Hefty profits from this system encouraged emergence of professional groups who took high risks with a view to making considerable gains.32 It is not known how effective these injunctions were in scrupulously protecting merchant shipping, or the measure to which they were actually enforced during the period under study.33 It is however certain that “illicit” attacks did take place especially against Greek subjects of the Ottoman Empire.34 The detailed deposition of an enslaved Ottoman Greek sailor before the Maltese Inquisitor helps us to perceive how galleys flying the flag of the Order used to hunt down these subjects targeting commerce between Egypt and the Dodecanese.35 During his deposition this Ottoman Greek subject stated that most of the crew on board his ship, which he described as being composed of half Christian half Muslim, managed to flee in small boats or risked swimming to the shore, while the Maltese attackers got on board and took hold of the merchandize irrespective of what belonged to the Christian sailors.36

In addition to the above pledge made when obtaining the licence to act as corsairs, notarial deeds relating to societas agreements which included specific cases related to corsairing activities would also include specific clauses to safeguard the interest of the shareholders. In fact, all such deeds consulted during this study always included a personal pledge by the shareholders which was intended to offset for any damages or losses which resulted through neglect or breach of contract.37 Some of the investors were often sedentary partners and thus made sure to include clauses wherein both patrone and captain would pledge to carry out their duties responsibly. Such clauses are indicative that if corsairs did contravene and were put to trial they were personally liable before the law to compensate for any damages sustained by the sedentary partners.

The imposition of these prohibitions, as well as the official protection afforded through safe passages, created the necessary incentives for both Christian and Muslim merchants to undertake what would otherwise have been impossible trading voyages to hostile lands in pirate-infested seas. At the same time they ensured that the Hospitaller government kept effective control over what would soon become the fastest growing sector

27 M. Greene, Catholic Pirates, p. 60.28 The issue of the salvi conductus to various Muslim merchants already discussed is a case in point.29 NLM, AOM, Liber Bullarum MS 414, fol. 275v, (10.viii.1530).30 NLM, AOM, Liber Bullarum MS 414, fol. 286v, (22.i.1531).31 A good example are the attacks carried out on Venetian shipping in 1554 and the consequential two sequestri of Hospitaller estates ordered by the Senate in a period of less than twenty-two months: V. Mallia-Milanes, Venice and Hospitaller Malta, p. 21.32 A. Luttrell, “The Earliest Documents,” pp. 177-188, p. 177.33 In 1534, the knight Fra. Filippo Mazza was arrested by the Venetians for attacking Christian ships in the Adriatic and in the Gulf of Venice. After succeeding to escape he was eventually recaptured and beheaded and his ships were burned. In 1555, Pope Paul IV ordered the Grand Master to prevent the Knights from molesting Venetian shipping. Indeed, Venice took reprisals against the Order in 1582-1583 on account of continuous attacks. This plundering forced the Venetian senate to order its navy to raid all Maltese ships which it encountered since these were disrupting commercial traffic and hindered the victualing of the Island of Candia, apart from irritating the Turks who vented their anger on Venetian possessions. Documentation pertaining to the 17th and 18th century reveals that during this period these injunctions were not always observed. In fact, there are repeated official warnings and decrees prohibiting Maltese corsairs from molesting the inhabitants of the Greek islands, and punishments ranging from simple fines to the infliction of the death penalty. During the war between France and Spain in 1637-1638, French knights breached the Order’s neutrality when they equipped their ships against the Spanish. Discipline was only restored after they were threatened with expulsion from the Hospitaller Order. P. Cassar, “The Maltese Corsairs,” pp. 146, 152-153. See also P. Falcone, “Una relazione di Malta sulla fine del Cinquecento,” Archivio Storico di Malta, IV/1 (1933) pp. 2-51, p. 7.34 M. Greene, Catholic Pirates, passim.35 In this particular case the Ottoman-Greek merchant ship was caught off Damietta “tra mare et salso”, which refers to the point where the river Nile opens up to the sea, while it was making its way to Modon: Joan Abela, “Who was Georgio Scala?” in Georgio Scala and the Moorish slaves: The Inquisition Malta 1598, Dionisius A. Agius (ed.) (Malta, Midsea Publication, 2013) pp. 213-234.36 J. Abela, “Who was Georgio Scala?”. As regards the seventeenth century refer to, M. Green, “Victims of Piracy,” p. 177-201.37 A good example which goes into the specifics of such obligations is found in NAV R 224/1, fols. 438-439, (31.i.1543).

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in Maltese economy, that is, corsairing and its ancillary activities.

Safe-conducts and Muslim traders

Christian or Muslim owners of a cargo vessel were both concerned to reach the same goal, which was to dispose of their merchandize in a profitable manner. Such bargaining processes defeated religious and cultural divides and both parties tried as best as they could to exploit all commercial possibilities afforded to them. Theoretically, Knights were the sworn enemy of Muslims and as such Maltese merchants were not supposed to engage in trading operations with any Ottoman subjects or in any Ottoman territory. In practice however, the story was quite different. In view of Malta’s lack of resources and as an obvious move to entice new settlement on the island which would help improve economic activity and stability, the Knights of St John supplicated Pope Clement VII to grant newly established traders on the island of Malta the necessary permission to trade with Muslims. It was thus that on October 1, 1530, the Pope, having evaluated the precarious state of the island’s provisioning decreed that the new inhabitants who settled in Malta, Gozo and Tripoli were allowed to trade in any kind of merchandize, including wheat, wine, oil and pulses, with the region of Barbary, the Moors and what were termed as “infidels”. 38

While still in Rhodes, the Order had already started the policy of granting safe conduct certificates to Muslim merchants. As discussed, Muslim shipping considered to be ‘friendly’ due to reciprocal benefits could not be attacked by Christian corsairs. These merchants were allowed to travel westwards and at times they even made use of Hospitaller ships in order to ensure safe arrival of various commodities at competitive prices from different regions.39 This practice was continued and further developed in Malta after the arrival of the Knights through the granting of letters patent or safe conducts issued by the Order’s chancery.40 Such historical records give life to the economic activities of some Muslim merchants who managed to find ways and means of penetrating the Christian market.41 Yet, how did the Order justify its amicable relations with Muslim merchants? Why did it seek to protect them and how did it go about ensuring the smooth flow of commodities from hostile lands?

A good indication is given to us through the perusal of documents such as those relating to the case of Nob. Bayz Mahmet Alganri who is described as a merchant Moor resident of Djerba. In order to protect his interests, in 1543 this merchant applied to the Grand Master for the granting of a safe conduct.42 The latter consented, but was careful to base his concession on the fact that many Christians were falling captives to Muslims and thus Muslim merchants such as Bayz Mahmet, would serve as excellent intermediaries for the redemption of the said captives since they were familiar with the region. The Grand Master’s concerns thus portrayed an Order which was resolute in extending help to Christian captives in North Africa, a concern which in official documents was always given precedence over that of the benefit of trade. The main motivation behind this was heavily based on the fact that the Order had to constantly justify its claims to revenues being extracted from all over Europe and could not risk appearing too lenient or co-operative with Christendom’s enemy.

It was thus that Bayz Mahmet was permitted to travel freely with his men and his merchandize between Malta and the fortress of Tripoli, and there conduct the necessary business for the redemption of Christian

38 Sebastiano Paoli, Codice Diplomatico del Sacro Militare Ordine Gerosolimitano, oggi di Malta, 2 vols. (Lucca: Salvatore e Giandomenico Marescandoli, 1737) pp. 201-202. This Bull also granted those who followed the Order from Rhodes to be exempt from the jurisdiction of the Bishop of Malta and instead fell under the ecclesiastical authority of the Prior of the Conventual Church.39 Daniel Panzac, La caravane maritime, marins européens et marchands ottomans en Mediterranée 1680-1830 (Paris: CNRS, 2004), 10. See also Ann Williams, “Sacra Militia, the Order of St. John: Crusade, Corsairing and Trade in Rhodes and Malta 1460-1631,” in Trade and Cultural Exchange, pp. 139-156, p. 144.40 A Bull issued in 1640 stated that those infidel traders who were caught trading without a safe conduct were captured and their wares confiscated. National Library Malta, (hereinafter NLM), Archives of the Order of Malta (hereinafter AOM), Liber Bullarum MS 469, fol. 70v.41 Bosio informs us that in 1529 some Turks who had been slaves of the Knights while still in Rhodes, and who were freed on the conquest of Rhodes by the Ottomans, still kept good relations with the Order, and, after being granted safe conducts from the “Turks” and from the Sicilian Viceroy they were constantly trafficking in merchandize between Modon and Messina. Giacomo Bosio, Dell’Istoria della Sacra Religione et Illustrissima Militia de S. Giovanni Gerosolimitano, 3 vols. (Rome: s.n., 1594-1602) vol. 3, p. 76.42 NLM, AOM, Liber Bullarum MS 415, fol. 255v (8.i.1534).

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slaves in Tunis and Djerba.43 At the same time, on his return voyage, together with the cargo of redeemed Christian slaves he was permitted to bring back to the island various other commodities in which he traded. It is interesting to note that in safe-conduct certificates all those responsible for the safe passage of the merchants were not only requested to let the ship travel safely on her way without undue delay, but were also specifically requested not to permit that she be molested.44 Such wording suggests that those to whom these instructions were addressed were also expected to extend their responsibility beyond their own actions and act accordingly if the protected ship was harassed by others.45

For the benefit of the reader, following is a typical example of a safe conduct certificate issued to a Muslim merchant (reproduced in Fig. 1):

Frater Claudius de la Sengle A tutti et qualimquam alle mani de iquali le presenti nostre perveniranno salute sia noto et manifestao qualmente l’eshibitor di esse Hagi buabdella de Chalipha Tripolino si parte al prensente di questa nostra isola di Malta con suo naviglio et marinari per andar alli Gerbi et tornar qua con alcune sue mercantie et robe per il che ci é stato supplicato gli volessimo dar et concedere nostre lettere patenti con le quali puotesse liberamente andar et tornar per l’effetto sopradetto. Per tanto commandiamo in virtu de Sancta ubedienza a tutti capitani et patroni de nostre galere et altri navigli di nostra Religione et di queste nostre Isole et dominij pregandovi Illustrissimi Principi Vicere locatenenti gubernatori armiragli generali proveditori Capitani giurati patroni et altri ufficiali de qual si voglia conditione nelle cui terre et giurisdictioni capitara detto Hagi Buabdella de Chalipha che lo lasciate liberamente andar passar et tornar con detto suo naviglio marinari et altre robbe et mercantie non permettendo che sia molestato impedito ne ritardato in modo alcuno anzi donarli et commandar esseli donato ogni aiuto et favore accio possa complir suo viaggo per il che restaremo obligati ad similia et multo maiora volendo che il prensente salvoconducto habbia vigore per un anno a contarsi dalla data delle presenti et oltre a nostra volunta et beneplacito. In cuius rei bulla nostra magistralis in cera Datum melitae die tertia mensis Octobris 1555. (sic)

Frater Claude de la Sengle. To all and whoever in the hands of whom the present our [letter patent] will reach good greetings. Be it known and manifested that the exhibitor of this [letter patent] Hagi Buabdella de Chalipha Tripolino is at present departing from this our island of Malta, with his ship to go to Djerba and come back here with some of his merchandize and goods, for which [purpose] we were requested that we would give and concede our letters patent, with which he could go and come freely to the effect of the above. Therefore we command in virtue of Holy Obedience to all captains and shipmasters of our galleys and other ships of our Religion and our islands and domains, praying to your Illustrious Princes, Viceroys, lieutenants, governors, admirals, generals, providers, captains, jurats, shipmasters and other officials of any kind and station in which lands and jurisdiction the said Hagi Buabdella de Chalipha will happen to be in, that you let him travel, go and come freely with his ship, sailors and other goods and merchandize, not permitting that he be molested, impeded or retarded in any way, but give him and command that he is given every kind of help and favour so that he could carry out his voyage for which (favour) we shall be greatly obliged. We order that the present safe conduct remains valid for one year from the present date together with our consent. Whereof our seal of government [is impressed] in wax. Given in Malta the third day of October 1555.

43 This particular safe conduct did not stipulate whether it was granted for just one trip or more.44 For examples relating to the last decades of the 16th century and mid-17th century refer to Anne Brogini, Malte, frontière de chrétienté (1530-1670) (Rome: École française de Rome, 2006), especially Chapter VII.45 NLM, AOM, Liber Bullarum MS 423, fol.236v, (17.vi.1553).

Fig.1 Extract from a typical letter patent issued by the Magisterial Palace and given to Muslim traders so that they may travel freely between Malta and North Africa, National Library of Malta, AOM Lib. Bull. 425 f. 207, (3.X.1555)

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Following the same procedure, Muslim merchants used to come over to Malta to redeem their fellow Muslim captives and at the same time take advantage of the privilege granted to them and trade in their goods. Mahometo Rayz described as “libero et franco turcho”46 was one such merchant who was granted a safe-conduct permit for one whole year. This merchant was requested to go to Djerba to redeem some Christian slaves. Consequently, he was allowed to come back to the island with his merchandize so that this may be exchanged for the release of some Turks and Moors.47 Similarly, Mechamet de Africa, who was once a slave but now enjoyed the status of “libero et manumesso” (free and manumitted), was to go to Tripoli and Tazora and from there collect the necessary money, or its equivalent in merchandize, to redeem some Moorish slaves found in Malta.48 In cases like this, a slave who had spent considerable time on the island would have established various connections with the local population and these might at some point in time translate themselves into profitable operations. Murgian de Abdala from Aden49 and Mahometo Hamidan Benalli de Zanzor50 were two such merchants. They were lucky enough to have been declared free as part of the joyous events celebrating the election of the Grand Master.51 Once free to return back home they both supplicated the Grand Master to give them a perpetual licence to travel with their merchandize between their country and Malta, a request which the Grand Master conceded on condition that their ships were not armed for corsairing. On the other hand Rays Ahmet del Monesterio52 was still the slave of Philippo Cilia when he was given a safe conduct to go to Goleta and Tunis and return with his ship loaded with merchandize, in order to ransom his freedom and that of a number of slaves.

It was thus that the Order tried to establish a healthy equilibrium between the projection of its image as the eternal enemy of the Muslim “infidel” and the necessity to procure commodities needed for its daily needs from hostile territories. As has been shown, the Order encouraged an indirect type of trade with Ottoman North Africa that was mostly executed by intermediaries, both Christian and Muslim. This policy brought to the island an ever increasing amount of heterogeneous, multi-religious and multi-ethnic mix of merchants and adventurers. This vibrant community found the adequate facilities to conduct its business, especially that relating to the lucrative trade of the redemption of slaves. Merchants conducted round trips wherein they managed to combine the shipment of humans with that of other commodities, thus fully exploiting both outward and inward voyages. Such commerce was protected through the granting of safe conduct certificates and, as Molly Greene has noted when analyzing court cases relating to the Maltese corso, “by forbidding attacks on infidels who possessed safe conducts from the grand master or other Christian princes, the court sought precisely to strike that balance between respect for state sovereignty and the recognition of religious difference”.53

The Greek community of merchants

As already noted Pope Clement VII granted the new inhabitants of Malta, Gozo and Tripoli permission to trade with Muslims.54 Various Rhodiot merchants,55 who followed the knights out of Rhodes, soon took advantage of the Order’s presence in Malta and Tripoli and tried to penetrate deeply in various economic activities which this

46 A free Turk. NLM, AOM, Liber Bullarum MS 423, fols. 213-213v (24.ii.1552).47 “Et anchora ritornar qua con alcune mercancie et robbe per il riscato de alcuni turchi et mori” (and once again return here with his merchandize and goods for the redemption of some Turks and Moors). NLM, AOM, Liber Bullarum MS 423, f. 213. (24.ii.1552).48 NLM, AOM, Liber Bullarum MS 423, (7.vi.1558), fol. 236v.49 NLM, AOM, Liber Bullarum MS 425, (24.v.1555), fols. 198-198v.50 NLM, AOM, Liber Bullarum MS 425, (14.v.1555), fol.199.51 Though the name of the Grand Master is not mentioned in the document his must have been granted to them by Grand Master Claude de la Sengle (1553-1557), and referred to in the document as supporting evidence of their current free status.52 NLM, AOM, Liber Bullarum MS 425, fols. 198-198v (15.ix.1556). Unfortunately the safe conduct certificates do not go into a lot of detail other than that which has been quoted above.53 M. Greene, Catholic Pirates, p. 114.54 S. Paoli, Codice Diplomatico, pp. 201-202. 55 Fiorini states that at times members of the Rhodiot community who settled in Malta were described simply as ‘Grecus’ or ‘Greca’, and not specifically as “Rhodius/Rhodia”. Clear instances of Greek surnames prior to the arrival of the Knights are also found in Maltese archives: Stanley Fiorini, ‘‘Demographical Aspects of Birgu up to 1800” in Birgu: A Maltese Maritime City, L. Bugeja, M. Buhagiar, & S. Fiorini (eds.), 2 vols. (Malta : Malta University Services, 1993) vol. 1, pp. 219-254, p. 233. Amongst other examples, confirmation of this statement is found in NAV, R 225/17, fol. 14, (3.ix.1560), which describes the Rhodiot Angelo Metaxi, an orthodox priest who came over to Malta with the Knights of St John, as “Grecus habitatoris de questa nova civitatis Melite.”

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new location afforded them.56 Such manoeuvres led to the creation of important trading networks with various other merchant communities, especially those with similar Greek or Latin Rhodiots57 scattered throughout the Mediterranean. The benefit of having such traders in Maltese shores may be appreciated from the efforts made by the Ottoman court in 1522 when it tried to convince these merchants to stay in Rhodes and refrain from departing with the Order.58 Their decision to follow the Hospitallers towards a rather bleak future points to their unwillingness to become Ottoman subjects and provides proof of their loyalty to their long-time Latin masters.

However, if one were to consider this decision from a purely economic point of view, it would be necessary to go beyond the loyalty factor. This is because Rhodiot merchants knew well that huge benefits went into supplying the Hospitaller Order with its daily worldly requirements. At the same time, the Order’s fleet provided Rhodiot Greek merchants with a sense of protection and belonging, something which their fellow Greeks who were subjects of the Ottoman sultan lacked due to religious divides which at times made them victims of both Christian and Muslim attacks.59 Life for these Greek merchants was a continuous struggle since, not only did they have to prove that they were Christian in faith but they also had to prove that the trade they were undertaking had a Christian identity.60

After 1530, the Greek Rhodiots who settled in Malta would have to share with their Maltese counterparts those rewards afforded to them through their link with the Order. The Maltese were already renowned for their corsairing activities. In fact, reports dating back to the beginning decade of the sixteenth century show what great consternation the violent corsairing attacks of the Maltese caused to Christian and Muslim ships plying the Adriatic and the Levant, notwithstanding the fact that these were enjoined from plundering Christian shipping.61 Once settled in Malta, the Rhodiot Greek seafarers would combine their expertise in seamanship with that of the Maltese and this, together with the protection that was afforded to them by the Order’s fleet,62 would make them formidable traders of the Mediterranean coasts.

Notwithstanding the divergences in judicial matters which were already discussed, Maltese traders soon capitalized on the plethora of opportunities which were injected into the local economy. The sudden heavy increase of a skilled and experienced merchant community with strong commercial ties throughout the Mediterranean littoral enhanced the prospects for the local seafarers who were still limited in their ventures due to lack of a strong naval presence in their port.

Various notarial deeds offer striking examples of partnership agreements which reveal how both the Greek and Maltese communities exploited each other’s maritime and trading abilities and capitalized on the interaction which existed between the Greeks who were established abroad and Maltese inhabitants.63 For instance, in a contract dated 18 September 153664 the Greek Alessandro Arborei, who was a resident of Messina, participates in an expedition to be conducted on the newly-constructed grippo of the Maltese Hon. Leonardo Falzuni from Mdina. Yet another contract reveals that Hon. Stammato Papadopulo from the island of Zakinthos, was indebted to Hon. Stammato Galanti a Rhodiot resident of Malta for the sum of 110 scudi due in respect of freight charges for the importation of twenty seven barrels of wine from Zakinthos. This

56 For more detailed information regarding the Rhodiot Community of Birgu refer to Stanley Fiorini, “The Rhodiot Community of Birgu, A Maltese Maritime City: 1530-c.1550” in Victor Mallia-Milanes (ed.), Library of Mediterranean History, vol. 1 (Msida, Malta: Department of History, University of Malta, 1994) pp. 183-241.57 S. Fiorini, “Demographical Aspects,” p. 230. Many of those who left Rhodes after the Turkish victory were not Greeks but Latins who had good motives for avoiding Turkish rule and settled elsewhere in the West. Anthony Luttrell, “The Rhodian Background of the Order of Saint John in Malta” in The Order’s Early Legacy in Malta, John Azzopardi (ed.), (Malta: Said International,1989), pp. 3-14, p. 5. 58 Molly Greene, A Shared World: Christians and Muslims in the Early Modern Mediterranean (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2000) p. 15, fn. 7. 59 The fear of being taken for Muslims is best appreciated in various requests made by Rhodiots to the Grand Master to take up residence in Malta. In their requests these, refer to them being circumcised against their will, therefore fearing that if captured during their voyage they would be automatically and erroneously listed as being of Muslim faith. NLM, AOM, Liber Bullarum MS 427, fol. 251, (14.4.1558).60 M. Greene, Catholic Pirates, p. 115.61 V. Mallia-Milanes, Venice and Hospitaller Malta, pp. 11-12; P. Cassar, “The Maltese Corsairs,” p. 146.62 The ambiguity of Greek merchants is described by Greene who states that they were “Christians but of a rather dubious kind from the Catholic point of view, and many were also Ottoman subjects. Not surprisingly, then, issues of identity and representation followed Greek merchants around the ports of the Mediterranean, including Malta”: M. Greene, Catholic Pirates, p. 11.63 In this context inhabitants does not only refer to Maltese natives, but even to foreigners who had settled in Malta and obtained a Maltese citizenship and those who in documents are referred to as “incola melitensis”, meaning that they were residents in Malta. 64 NAV, R 202/1, fols. 15-16, (18.ix.1536).

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consignment had to be shipped by Angelo de Pasquali and payment had to be effected at Birgu, in cash through the services of the money changer,65 within the next four months from the date of the sale of the said wine.66

A typical example of the modus operandi of the Order providing a good insight into how they exploited the trading potential of the Greek community which followed them to the Maltese ports may be gleaned from chancery records. On December 8, 1534, the Greek Sydero Metaxi, who was employed on one of the Order’s galleys was granted a safe passage conduct certificate to go to the Levant, Zante and Cefalonia in order to buy and import wine for the use of the Hospitaller Order.67 The said Sydero seems to have been an important middleman for the supply of the Order’s needs from that area, since, in another edict issued by the Order’s chancellery in November 1530, Fra. Luys Broglia, Captain of one of the Order’s galleys (galione), was instructed to sail to Zante and Cefalonia, where, once arrived, he had to discover the going prices for wine and meat. Once this work was undertaken, any commodities bought were to be acquired through the services of the above-mentioned Sydero Metaxi who was described as ‘familiar to the region’.68 Such partnerships allowed investors to take full advantage of the practical experience of a particular merchant and his knowledge of the market, which would augur well for an advantageous business deal. It is also clear that although merchants would be assigned to negotiate on behalf of the Order, precautionary measures were taken to ensure that actual prices were not inflated.

The accumulation of trustworthy information had a pivotal role in the well being of the Order, not only for spying purposes as is well attested in various instructions given to officials and individuals who were ordered to spy on the movements of the Turks,69 but also as regards to the supply of various commodities to the island at competitive prices. Thus, although there seems to have been a good relationship between the Order and various merchants operating in different parts of the Mediterranean, this relationship did not compromise the independent scrutiny by the Order when evaluating trading activities. The importance of this adopted system of “market intelligence”, as Benjamin Braude defines it, needs to be evaluated in its contemporary context where trading operations and prices were constantly conditioned by factors such as regional conflicts, epidemics and scarcity of food supply.70

The Order’s efforts to increase the safety of the waters surrounding Birgu made it an ideal maritime centre hosting an interrelated network of commercial communities. Malta was not only becoming a vibrant centre for trade, but was also fast becoming a centre for financial dealings used by foreigners, including Greeks.71 As a result of this cooperation and diversity, all of those involved in trade thrived and many foreign merchants who established a connection with the inhabitants served as cross-cultural contacts facilitating trading activities.72

Conclusion

The arrival of the Knights Hospitallers in 1530 marked a turning point for both local and foreign commercial operators in the Mediterranean. Their establishment on the island, coupled with their cruising activities, provoked and protected Muslim commercial shipping crossing the Mediterranean. Commercial activities in Malta were greatly motivated and enhanced since the Order served as a pull factor to a myriad of merchants from all across the Mediterranean littoral. Its very presence on the island created a heavy and immediate demand for the provisioning of various commodities ranging from those relating to the basic daily needs of the population, such as wheat and oil, to those most costly, such as slaves. In order to meet these demands both knights and merchants found it necessary to undertake voyages towards North Africa and the Levant, a necessity which saw the flourishing of a link between Christian and Muslim merchants. The Order sought to protect this trade through the granting

65 The term used is “ut bancus”, it however not stated whose banking or money changing services the parties were going to use.66 Such happy co-existence not only provided for the adequate provisioning of the island, but ensured the Hospitallers’ successful establishment. Even though prior to the arrival of the Order the island enjoyed a semi-autonomous rule, the Order knew that by providing sufficient work opportunities and adequate food supplies for the benefit of population this would ensure that the medieval ruling elite would have their influence greatly diminished thus limiting the risk of popular uprisings. 67 NLM, AOM, Liber Bullarum MS 415, fol. 194v, (8.xii.1534).68 NLM, AOM Liber Bullarum MS 414, fols. 282-282v, (21.xi.1530), “pratico in quelle parte.”69 A case in point is that of Giorgio Marino de Candia, who on 11 May 1532 was given a safe conduct to travel with his ship (fregata) in order to spy on the movements of the Ottomans. NLM, AOM, Liber Bullarum 415, fol. 231v.70 Benjamin Braude, “Venture and Faith in the Commercial Life of the Ottoman Balkans,” International History Review, 7 (1985) pp. 519-542, p. 528.71 Refer to J. Abela, Port Activities, especially Chapter 2.72 Carmel Cassar, Society, Culture and Identity in Early Modern Malta (Msida, Malta: Mireva, 2000) pp. 75-76.

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of special permissions known as safe-conducts and through the policing of nearby waters. Although these safe-conducts did not guarantee successful undertaking of the venture, they provided both Muslim and Christian merchants with a considerable amount of political and legal protection.

ARCHIVAL AND MANUSCRIPT SOURCES

Notarial Archives Valletta (NAV)

Notary Nicolò de Agatiis, R (Register) 202/1 (1535-1537); 202/8 (1543-1544)

Notary Giuseppe de Guevara, R 224/1 (1537-1543); MS (Original) 778/1 (1546-1555)

Notary Placido Abela MS 514/1 (1557-1560)

National Library, Malta (NLM), Archives of the Order, Malta (AOM)

Liber Bullarum MS 414, (1528-1530); MS 415, (1531-1534); MS 423, (1551-1553); MS 425, (1555-1556); MS 427, (1558-1559); MS 469, (1639-1641)